GEN1585 With some minor exceptions, promises are not enforceable.   The law that reflects   common cynical appraisal of promises.   They are hollow words spoken by someone eager to make a good impression.   There are several reasons for the failure of the law to give promises binding force.   A promise may be a declaration of intent rather than a formulation of an irrevocable decision. Promises flow from sudden impulses and do not represent a reasoned conclusion. The extemporaneous phraseology of a promise lacks careful framing. Promises are frequently made in jest. From a legal point of view, promises may be broken with impunity.   [Note: The reader should be cautious; this is not necessarily true under American law – AJL].   What about the moral point of view? Does a person who has no regard for his word brand himself as untrustworthy? Does a breach of promise constitute a breach of faith and trust? Most biblical passages and injunctions dealing with promises relate to oaths and vows, which are legally binding. Jacob made Joseph swear that he would transport this body for burial at the Cave of Machpelah [this verse]. Jacob realized that Joseph’s responsibilities might make it difficult for him to get a leave of absence. This might force him to break a promise, but he would never violate an oath. Prior to Joseph’s death, he too made his kinsmen swear that his skeleton would be removed from Egypt when all the Hebrew slaves departed the land. Genesis 50:25 A later generation might not feel bound by a mere promise made several centuries earlier, especially if circumstances rendered such a time-consuming task a most difficult assignment. He therefore demanded an oath. To preclude the possibility of retraction, all promises made to God were put in the form of a vow. “And Jacob vowed a vow, saying: ‘If God will be with me … of all that thou shalt give me, I will give a tenth unto thee’” Genesis 28:20-22.  And Israel vowed a vow unto the Lord, and said …” Numbers 21:2   Ecclesiastes warned people against breaking a vow on the excuse that it was unintentional and “made in error” Ecclesiastes 5:5.   Apparently there was no significant opprobrium attached to a breach of a verbal promise to a fellowman.   BLOCH 248-9